Ten on Tuesday: I hereby resolve…

I’ve never really been one to make New Year’s resolutions. I don’t think there’s anything magical about January 1. If you want to change something in your life, you can do it any time you decide to – the beginning of next month, the first day of summer, next Monday, tomorrow, five minutes from now! New Year’s Day is an artificial milestone. For example, if you decide you’re going to start a healthy new habit – or break an unhealthy old one – you’re cheating yourself if you wait till then instead of starting right away.

Then I came up with a list of resolutions I might make if I made them. Since I still feel the same way about resolutions in general, I thought I’d start with last year’s list, and see whether they were accomplished or needed to be carried over or changed for 2009. If you’ve ever gone through the goal-setting process in a performance review, it’s kind of the same concept. I ended up with one carryover, a few revisions, and several new ones. We’ll see how things go with this batch.

Be more present when spending time with family and friends, and keep my mind where my body is (instead of thinking about blog post ideas or other items on my to-do list)

A resolution I never imagined I’d have to make: make more time for reading books. As much as I enjoy blogging, it’s really taken a chunk out of book time.

Plan – and actually take! – a special local/regional outing with my husband at least once every couple of months. Carried over from last year’s list: still a good idea, but one we really didn’t get to act on very often, and given the current economy, “local tourism” seems like a particular smart idea.

Maintain my weight on my own, using what I’ve learned in four years with Weight Watchers. Re-focus on using my Weight Watchers tools and habits, with a goal of losing 10-15 pounds (I did NOT like what I saw on the scale at my doctor’s office last week!)

Related to #4: Now that we live in a neighborhood favorable for long walks, take them as often as time and weather permit, with or without the dog!

Take more pictures, and post more of them on my blog. I carry my camera with me all the time anyway, and I really need to think more about using it!

Catalog my books. (Wow, I actually DID this one!) Either drop my GoodReads account, or match it up to my LibraryThing book catalog.

Put more effort into being a better correspondent and friend to people I don’t communicate with via blogging and Twitter (a/k/a people I’ve known in person since long before the Blog Era)

On the flip side of #8: Take (or make) opportunities for more in-person connections with people I’ve “met” via blogging

Cook more often, and try for a more varied menu without sabotaging my weight goals

Are you making any New Year’s resolutions yourself? If you are – or, like me, if you are hypothetically – what might a few of them be?

Wendy (Literary Feline) – As far as #9 goes, you’re on my list of people I’d like to meet next year :-). I keep thinking a meet-up of SoCal book bloggers – maybe coinciding with the Festival of Books? – sounds like a good idea.

referral links, from me to you!

something for us both: a new product or service for you, credit for me!